


Clutch Powers and the Wish Maker

by Pokedash55, Purplefern



Category: Lego Ninjago
Genre: Bargains, Clutch being a clever bastard, Crack, Crack Treated Seriously, Crack Treated Way Too Seriously, F/M, Gen, Happy ending for Nadakhan, I mean the world didn't end so something went right, I'm Bad At Titles, I'm not changing it, based on that sight gag in Prime Empire, co-written with my sister, giving myself some Delara/Nadakhan content without the weird pedo vibes, in my defense the wiki spells Dilara as Delara, minor Skybound salt, oh my gosh how did this end up so long?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-25
Updated: 2020-11-25
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:26:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,828
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27660652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pokedash55/pseuds/Pokedash55, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Purplefern/pseuds/Purplefern
Summary: Clutch looked at the small golden teapot in his hands.Maybe this could be valuable, he thought.Without thinking any further, his hand turned the center piece, forming a complete picture on the teapot’s side…(Clutch Powers makes a mistake, then makes a deal.)
Relationships: Dilara/Nadakhan (Ninjago), Nadakhan & Clutch Powers
Comments: 2
Kudos: 13
Collections: The_Newbie's Ninjago Fanfic Collection





	Clutch Powers and the Wish Maker

**Author's Note:**

> Ok so you know that really tiny sight gag in the very beginning of Prime Empire when Clutch Powers has the teapot of Tyrahn? My sister and I started talking about what that interaction could look like, and it devolved into this. 
> 
> Happy Thanksgiving to any fellow Americans, enjoy this dumb little oneshot.

“Ah, gumdrops,” Clutch Powers swore as the pot in his hands started to sparkle and emit an ominous orange smoke. In his archaeological experience that was never a good sign. You figured he’d learned from the Ninja not to go opening random puzzle looking artifacts, but he had gone and gotten greedy. 

Before he could drop the pot and attempt to claim plausible deniability, a form emerged from the spout of the teapot, stretching and groaning in a heavily accented voice, “Finally! I thought I would _never_ get out.” 

Fully uncovered from the veil of smoke, Clutch (against better judgement) watched wide-eyed as a four-armed orange figure whirled around mid-air, taking in his surroundings. _Double gumdrops_ he swore again internally. If he knew his history and other worldly creatures, he had just gone and released a djinn on himself. 

Fortunately, it seemed this djinn was preoccupied, one of his fists clenched and scowling into the distance while angrily muttering to himself. “Those ninja will _pay_ for trapping me again!” 

Why was Clutch not surprised? Those ninja seemed to be full of trouble. He’d better sneak away while he was still uninvolved… 

The archeologist’s happy thought of escape was dashed as the djinn registered his presence. In an instant, the scenery changed into the tropical paradise, far from the crowded streets of Ninjago city. Why did he have to have some dumb adventure today? Darn it this was the Ninja’s fault. As Clutch registered his new surroundings (and made a note to list all the ways to ninja-proof his life from now on), the figure turned to face him with a slick and dangerously charming smile. 

“Well,” he drawled, attention now entirely on Clutch, “I assume _you_ are the one who saved me from my captivity?” He circled Clutch slowly, like a shark circled its prey in those hit adventure movies. 

Clutch could only nervously nod in response, standing still despite the waves from the beach dampening his good hiking shoes. Great, wet socks. This day was getting better and better.

The djinn brought a hand to his chin, stroking his slight goatee in mock thoughtfulness, “In that case, there must be _something_ I could give you in return, something you _wish_ for?” 

The historian and ex-adventurer gulped at the djinn’s expression, which looked less like a grateful innocent victim and more like the cat that had cornered the canary. Fervently waving his hands in front of him and shaking his head, Clutch exclaimed, “Nope! Nope. Not dealing with that. I’m _retired_ from adventures. Last thing I need is to have to deal with some tricky djinn.” 

He turned on his heel and walked inland--away from the orange skinned man (and the annoying waves) -- only to be immediately interrupted as he poofed directly in front of him, blocking his path. “Oh, come on!” the historian lamented. 

The djinn spread out all four arms, placating, asking with his still fake-sincere voice, “Come now, there must be _some_ way I can repay you.”

“I don’t think so,” replied Clutch, but he was observing the djinn’s hands closer, noticing one of them replaced by a hook -- the image jogging something in his memory. Studying the djinn closer, looking at his clothing and face, he realized he recognized him. “Wait a minute,” he asked in surprise, “Aren’t you Nadakhan the Djinn?”

“Oh, you have heard of me?” questioned the pirate captain, the fake happiness in his voice being replaced by genuine interest. 

“Um, yeah,” replied the archeologist, far more hesitantly. Internally he chastised himself for giving him information. _Especially_ since he was dealing with Nadakhan. If half the stories he had heard were true, he would be much safer not showing any of his hand. But now he didn’t have that option anymore, so he mused aloud, “You were the pirate captain of Misfortune’s Keep. But, you were imprisoned way out in the sea, how the heck did you end up _here_ in Ninjago City?” _And how did I not recognize that teapot_ _before_ _I stupidly opened it?_ he silently bemoaned. 

At that, Nadakhan’s face briefly pulled back into a scowl, before he forced it back to a smooth, nonchalant expression, “Hmm. An attempt to rebuild my realm of Djinnjago, a lost timeline, those _ninja_ . It’s not important, really. What matters more is where I am _now_ , don’t you think?” 

The ex-adventurer ignored the further attempts to get him to wish for something, and focused on all that other stuff instead. There was a whole lot of that statement he didn’t understand, and a whole lot more that he didn’t want to understand. But one thing stuck in his mind, and, attempting to distract from Nadakhan’s attempt to manipulate him and force him to make unfortunate wishes, he hastily (but with a well-practiced fake confidence) asked, “Why not just wish for Djinnjago back?” 

Nadakhan stared at him, then dropped all pretense of casualness, instead now turning his deep scowl to the historian and hissing, “I cannot grant my own wishes, fool.”

The scheming wheels in Clutch Power’s head were starting to turn. If he was clever, he could probably get out of this unscathed. And even if he didn’t actively go on adventures and whatnot anymore, he was definitely still clever. He’d schmoozed his way out of enough tough spots that he was fairly confident he could do it this time. So, mimicking Nadakhan’s sneaky grin, he proposed with his continued fake-confidence, “Well, how about a deal, then? I wish your wishes _for_ you, and in exchange you leave me alone?” His manufactured grin turned up into a smirk, and he asked to the bewildered djinn captain, “So, what is it that _you_ want?” 

Nadakhan sputtered momentarily. Never before had someone so swiftly turned the tables on him, and it was unsettling being the one on the receiving end of a dangerous bargain. Well, that, or he was getting rusty after so many years and his great defeat at the hands of Jay. “What I want," he scoffed, but all the same considered the deal. Really, what did he have to lose if he went along with this man’s attempts at a clever ploy? He had already tried rebuilding his home realm once and failed; and now he had no crew, no ship, and no Delara. So, mockingly he told the eye-patched man, “Just my entire realm of Djinnjago restored.” 

Not missing a beat, Clutch swiftly shrugged and said casually, with his right hand waving in a sarcastic circle, “Alright. I wish Djinnjago was back safe and sound and everyone was back to normal there and such.”

Nadakhan shuddered as he felt his magic involuntarily grant the request, the familiar sensation stronger than usual, probably because it was such a large wish. His thoughts stopped in their tracks, mouth hanging open in shock. There was _no way_ that that worked. His magic couldn’t have been strong enough to bring back an entire realm, even if it was for the purpose of following his nature and granting the wish. Hands suddenly shaking, he crossed his arms and tried not to let the man see how much he was affected. 

“Anything else you want, or can I go free now?” asked Clutch seemingly flippantly, though his eye caught how Nadakhan was shaken. 

As though the word were forced from his throat, the pirate choked out, “Delara. I want to see my beloved again.” He couldn’t even be ashamed of himself for falling for this bargain so desperately, his heart yearned too strongly to see his lover who had been ripped away from him just as he had held her in his arms again. 

How quickly the world can flip on one, Nadakhan mused as this strange man nodded business like, and he himself desperately waited for his wish to be granted. “Well, I wish that your Delara was here and with you, healthy and happy.” 

Nadakhan shuddered again, shakily giving a hissing inhale as suddenly she was there beside him, rubbing at her head and looking exactly as he remembered. Not how he remembered her from when she had had to borrow that ninja girl’s form-- how he _truly_ remembered her as they had entered countless battles, the exact shape of her face that he had covered with hundreds of kisses and of which he knew every inch. “Delara,” he breathed in shock, one his hands reaching out for her own as she steadied herself and looked around. 

“Nadakhan, my love,” she replied in similar tone, through her eyes shone with confusion, “How have I returned? The last I remember we had been hit by that venom, we had lost…”

Nadakhan couldn’t conjure up any words (a rare occurrence for a shifty djinn like himself). He swished around his love, taking in every inch of her beauty. It had been so long since he had seen her in full flesh and blood that was not borrowed or temporary. The djinn bent down courteously in midair and kissed his dearly beloved on the hand.

“This adventurer has freed me,” Nadhakan began, turning away and gesturing towards the man who had brought her back from the Departed realm. The djinn swirled around Clutch Powers as he explained how the former adventurer gave his three wishes to himself, allowing Nadhakan the power to wish for what he truly wanted with a clear head, independently from the overwhelming addictive power of his father’s royal blade. 

Clutch gave a nervous laughter, whipping beads of sweat from his forehead as he once again looked around the tropical surrounding Nadakhan had transported them too. “Yup, happy to oblige, cheers to the lovely couple, I’m gonna go ahead and go now…” Turning around, he had just lifted one foot into the air to finally flee this exchange; only to be stopped once again by a poofing Nadakhan. “Seriously?” he complained. 

The smirk was passed once again to the djinn, who confidently cocked a brow at the escaping adventurer. “Not yet, explorer. I believe I still get one more wish before our deal is concluded.” Delara circled around the exasperated man to stand beside her captain, pinning Clutch with a mischievous and sharp grin that matched her djinn lover’s. Clutch gulped, wondering if he might have gotten himself over his head. In some ways this rather petit woman scared him more than the pirate captain. (Maybe because he was well versed in the ways of talking himself out of a corner, but consistently useless against anything involving the fairer sex.) 

“Alright, fine. Whaddya want so I can get out of this mess and back to the high life of doing nothing and getting rich off my memoirs?” he asked quickly, not even caring about looking in control of the situation anymore. After all, they had a deal, and there was only one wish left, easy as pie. 

Nadakhan grinned sharply, glad to be in charge again. He didn’t really have any need to hurt the archeologist, but still, it could be entertaining to stretch this out a bit longer. “Hmmm,” he dragged out a melodramatic hum, before turning to the woman at his side, “Delara, my dear, you used all of your wishes long ago, but now you may have another chance. What do you think my final wish should be?” It was really no wonder he was able to trap so many in unwanted deals, the power to wish for whatever you wanted was addicting. 

She giggled lightly, just like she always used to do before raiding another ship and running into battle, and his heart swelled at the sound. Caressing his hooked arm she replied, “The only thing I ever needed was a ship to sail on and a handsome captain to stand beside.”

“Well, you heard the lady,” he told Clutch, though his eyes did not leave Delara’s for an instant, “Give us back our ship. Get us the Misfortune’s Keep.” 

“And then you’ll leave me alone, yeah?” pushed Clutch, making sure their deal was solid before he got rid of his bargaining chip. 

“Of course,” replied the djinn, finally turning towards him with a toothy grin, and though that wasn’t exactly encouraging, the adventurer figured it was the best he was probably going to get. 

“Fine. I wish for the Misfortune’s Keep,” he intoned without flourish, just wanting to get this stressful encounter over with. (He _did not_ like the way that Delara was looking at him, the sooner the creepy couple got away from him the better.) 

With a grand splashing wave, the ship in question touched down in the bay just beside them. Nadakhan embraced Delara and teleported out of the cresting avalanche of water, but Clutch wasn’t so lucky and sputtered as he was completely soaked. “There!” he spat, wiping water laden bangs out of his face, “Everything you wished for. I’m officially tapped out.” 

The lady pirate was already giggling maniacally and running towards the ship in the bay, not seeming to mind the surf running up her legs one bit. Grinning more softly, the pirate captain floated beside her, momentarily grabbing her hand. “Delara, my love, what say you to leaving this wretched realm behind? I still know where the thin spot to my home realm is, we could sail there together.”

“Well, you _have_ promised to show me Djinnjago,” she replied flirtatiously. 

Cupping her chin into his hand he rasped, “Then we shall be married there as we always planned. You will be a _queen_.” 

Giggling again, though less maniacally than before, she stroked his goatee and teased, “Sounds like a boring honeymoon. Forget being queen, let’s pillage and plunder until we run out of sea, and drive dear old dad crazy.” 

Nadakhan laughed, soon dissolving into a very pirate-y chuckle, then kissed Dleara like he had wanted to do the whole time, no longer registering the adventurer in the audience. Finally tearing away, he told her, “This is why I love you.” 

Grabbing her hand once again, the two boarded the ship and prepared to set sail. Clutch blinked, finally realizing what was happening (he was a sucker for a good romance story, ok? He was distracted) “Hey, wait a minute!” he shouted as the ship’s anchor was hauled up, “What about me?! You have to take me home!” 

Nadakhan peered over the edge of the ship, grinning his shark-like grin and causing Clutch’s spirits to sink, “Why, adventurer, I promised I would leave you _alone_ after you made your last wish!” Laughing once again, the captain turned away and lowered the sails, and the ship started to move away from the island. “Thank you for your wishes!” chuckled Nadakhan over his shoulder, waving a hand dismissively in farewell. 

Clutch gaped at the rapidly disappearing ship as it made its way towards the horizon, the couple’s cackling echoing across the waves as was, in fact, left alone on the sandy beach. Sighing to himself, he finally turned away from the shore, muttering to himself, “Alright, I could have planned that better. But at least I’m still in one piece!” 

Thinking back on Delara’s wicked expression and clear joy in chaos, he wondered guiltily just for an instant if maybe letting an infamous pirate captain just proverbially walk off with a ship could be dangerous. He quickly shrugged it off with an, “oh, well”. He didn’t get this far in the business by worrying about everyone else. 

He looked around his surroundings once again, but then back to the teapot he still held, his thoughts lightening. At least he had gotten _something_ out of this whole debacle. Grabbing his phone he dialed a number he didn’t think he would call again. 

“Explorer’s Club, this is Cecil Putnam speaking.” 

“Hey, Cecil old bean, mind sending over an Explorer club plane for me? I’m a bit stuck at the moment.” 

“Clutch Powers?” huffed the proper voice on the other end, “Must I remind you that you are no longer a member of this institution?” 

“Yeah, but that was before I had the Teapot of Tyrahn, now wasn’t it?” He couldn’t help but smirk in victory as Cecil gasped at the claim. 

“ _You?_ The _Teapot of Tyrahn_?!” Cecil sputtered, “How, when you haven’t gone on a single adventure in over a decade?” 

“Oh, you know,” he drawled, ecstatic at making the stuffed-shirt finally impressed, “An amazing adventure, stared down a djinn, the usual, really.” 

“That certainly sounds exciting!” 

“Yeah. I can’t wait to tell you the whole thing when you let me back into the Explorer’s Club. And, I don’t know, maybe I could leave this ole’ teapot in the archives as well.” 

He could practically hear Cecil thinking it over. Finally the older man sighed, and relented, “I’ll send Underhill’s plane to fetch you. Just send us your coordinates. And then you’ll tell us everything.” 

“Of course,” he replied, grinning to himself. Hey, look at him, winning two bargains in one day. He was _good_. 

**Author's Note:**

> Delara and Nadakhan really ran away with this story like the romantic pirates that they are, haha. Anyway, hope you enjoyed whatever this was, comment & kudos etc. Thanks for reading!


End file.
